Entering the Turkish cities of Kahramanmaras and Gaziantepe, which surround the epicenter of the earthquake that killed, until this Wednesday (8), 12 thousand people, brings a mixture of oppression and fear.
The oppression is due to seeing for yourself the ruins of entire buildings on the ground, bulldozers and bulldozers rummaging through rubble, and wondering if anyone under the tons of concrete will be rescued or crushed. The fear concerns arriving at one of the least safe places on Earth, at least this week.
After the earthquake of magnitude 7.8, on Sunday night (5), dozens of aftershocks followed, scaring even more the population and worrying the dozens of rescue groups that come from all over the world.
On the path taken by Sheet to reach the region, there were Japanese rescue forces, Russian volunteers and Spanish firefighters. The point of convergence in Turkey is Kayseri, a city that traditionally receives thousands of tourists who go to Cappadocia, an hour away, to fly in a hot air balloon.
That’s where the Japanese land. “Our first class arrived yesterday [terça (7)]and we hear they’ve already rescued three,” says Takemi Ishikuri, of the Japanese national police. He leads a group of 70 police, firefighters and Coast Guard agents, called, as can be seen from their uniforms and caps, the Rescue Relief Group. disasters.
They take four dogs trained to locate people in rubble. “Our country has great experience with situations like this”, says Ishikuri, between proud and moved, recounting having participated in the work after the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that devastated Japan in 2011.
The 30 Russians, by contrast, are all volunteers. With passable English, one turns out to be an engineer at a St. Petersburg factory. He says he has no experience with earthquakes, as his city, unlike Gaziantepe, is in the middle of a swamp.
A Russian woman approaches and says she is a paramedic. Until the leader rants that they are passing on too much information. “Informatsiya” is the only word she gives to fish, but it says it all.
A Sheet asks Ishikuri if the three rescued by his team were alive. It seemed obvious that yes, but no. “Two dead. One alive”, he replies, in a serious tone.
Travel in the south of the country is chaotic. In some cities, airports are closed. In others, there is no gasoline. On part of the roads, the car spends 60 minutes without putting first gear due to road damage.
To get to Gaziantepe, departing from Kayseri, the four-hour stretch becomes eight. Vans and pickup trucks full of water compete for space with trucks so large that they carry two or even three excavators in their buckets.
Close to Kayseri, it’s the weather conditions that get in the way. The dual carriageway turns into a single lane when the snow piles up on both sides and squeezes everyone in between. Sometimes, the ice takes over the track, and the car slides away, until the guardian angel decides to reappear.
Occasionally, traffic stops. Serious faces can be seen inside the vehicles heading south. They are family members going to rescue relatives, volunteers taking groceries or people going to pick up friends with whom they cannot contact.
On the opposite side of the track, on the contrary, are people fleeing from the epicenter. They are scared? Relieved? Will they be residents who no longer have their properties? Or will it be tenants who now have no more rent to pay? It would be necessary to go down in the cold of -8ºC to knock on the windows and ask.
The internet works, but cities suffer in many ways. In Gaziantepe, there is no hot water. Hotel receptionists suggest guests use the electric coffee makers in the rooms to heat the bath water. The temperature in the city reaches 5ºC when the sun hits.
In the eight-story hotel where the reportage is located — but with architecture prepared up to a magnitude of 9, the reception guarantees — there are 90 people sheltered, most of them relatives of the house’s employees. The hotel has opened its doors to them free of charge, and the kids won’t sit still. For them, life always goes on.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
